Running issues - choke I think

My mechanic has done some work on my car to get it toad worthy after it being laid up for quite a few years, but he hasn't managed to get it running well during warm up.

Once its warm it will run nice but during the first few minutes if I blip the throttle it will stall. It will rev up slowly.

Once its warmed up its OK.

I was wondering if it is a choke issue and if their are different variations or if this is a common problem and there's a part that needs replacing.

Either way, I am loving my new driving experience, even it it is a bit more noisy that I expected :dry:

Hi Jason,

I am assuming your mechanic has tuned the car up. if so, it may be worth replacing your coolant on the car and flushing out the system while you do it. While doing this you could get the hoses off that run to the choke and make sure they are clean and free from debris. and also check the housing isn't gunged up.

Thanks for the reply.

I think your right. I read an article after posting this about the two pipes getting bunged up.

I gave them a squeeze last night to see if I could feel any build up, I could swear its running better already. Maybe I dislodged something and the hot water is flowing a bit better.

I may be changinging the pipies and soak the choke when I replace the heater valve behind my heater controls.

Jason

From memory most auto chokes need setting 'on' before starting. This is usually done by pressing the accelerator right down which allows the choke mechanism to close the butterfly. I might be wrong regarding an X1/9, someone will correct if necessary . In any case when the engine is cold have a look down the carb to see if the choke flap is indeed shut, and when its warm make sure it fully opens. The internals get furred up and /or the springs get lazy leading to it sticking on, or off. The best bet if you have these issues is to replace the unit

Thanks for the reply speedy.

She's not stalling when I apply the pedal, at anything more than a tickle, when cold. So I'm a lot happier.

I'm going to replace the heater valve behind the heater controls and while it's drained I'll take the two hoses off and the choke and thermostat and have a clean of those aswell.

I had her out on the road and getting used to her, they're great fun.

I'm finding it quite noise, especially if I've opened her up and then take my foot off. There's a loud humming almost hoover sound. It's really loud.

I've got one of those back metal air intake with an arm coming off it where the air gets sacked in, would changing that help do you think ?

Jason

Sounds like you've got the standard air intake there. Is it like a large black frying pan?

Do you have the standard exhaust fitted or is an aftermarket one? That would point to excessive noise perhaps.

As Jon (Speedy) says pressing the accelerator is mentioned in the drivers handbook I think. I might just need to check that out....

Yes , large black frying pan.
Exhaust, two twin pipes sticking out.

I'll pop the top off and look at choke and read manual.

Jason

Sounds like it's not the standard exhaust fitted which would account for the excessive noise.

The standard exhaust has a single outlet. If I'm feeling energetic I'll get a picture and load it up here.

Hi Jason,

On my 1981 1500 pressing the accelerator to the carpet and then releasing it sets the automatic choke, when the engine fires the revs go up to 2500 - 3000 gradually reducing as the engine warms up. If I prod the accelerator then the revs will drop to 1000 - 1500 or, if not hot enough, stall. You can drive away with the auto choke operating and it will gradually disengage. Usually by the time I have closed the garage door etc the engine is warm enough to drive away without it.

If the car has been laid up for some time but is driveable then I would put some miles on it before doing any work. Every spring I drive mine until the petrol tank is nearly empty and then fill up with fresh clean petrol before the annual service.

One of the first things to check are the contact breaker points, which are difficult to get at, even using the access hatch behind the spare wheel, they are best set up with a dwell meter.

The first part to change when you have it running properly is the timing belt which should be changed every five years, this will have deteriorated even if unused with the lands cracking where they attach to the belt. I would replace the tensioner bearing at the same time.

An X1/9 is not a quiet car, but with the roof off on a sunny day it's great. Your noise could be lack of an air cleaner, an air leak into the carburettor / manifold or, a common problem, a slipping auxiliary belt.

Best wishes, Geoffrey.

A picture of what the standard exhaust looks like.